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Restaurant Rave LA: Pine and Crane

Chinese restaurants are known for greasy, MSG’d out foods. They’re good, ooo so good, but you’ll likely walk away feeling sick to your stomach. When my friend told me about Pine and Crane, Taiwanese restaurant that I would ‘love’, I was a bit hesitant to comply. “You HAVE to try it, it just opened and it’s SO AMAZING.. You’re going to friggen LOVE IT!” “Okay, if you’re so sure, what the hay…” I had to try it.

Parking was a drag.. I mean it’s LA. Unless, they have a designated parking area I’m not aware about, I’d have to say street parking is the way to go. When I first walked in, I immediately loved the atmosphere. Big windows, natural sunlight, and wooden chairs and tables. Simple enough. It felt like I was in a traditional Taiwanese restaurant. The menu is AUTHENTIC. When I saw pig ears on the menu… I knew there was true Taiwanese behind all this…. and IN SILVERLAKE? What an odd spot to have an authentic Taiwanese restaurant right? It sure works though!

I ordered the jaja noodles. Man.. I’m so bad at Mandarin, I don’t even know what these dishes are called in my native language. I also tried the beef noodle soup (excellent), noodles in peanut sauce ( also excellent), and the minced beef rice ( Bombay!!). All the appetizers and side dishes were delicious except for the green onion pancakes. That was a bit disappointing, but the homemade noodles made up for it!

Apparently Pine and Crane is a noodle company in Taiwan! The texture on those noodles are totally NOT GLUTEN FREE. It springs and it’s chewy, dense, and light all at the same time. The best part about the restaurant… it’s not overly greasy and salty! My dream come true! *sigh* Put’s a smile on my face just thinking about it.